Best To-Do, iTunes U, and other Whoop-te-do

Why (And How) Teachers Should Start Using iTunes U

Duke University at iTunes U

A quick search of the iTunes U catalog reveals many incredible courses full of engaging educational materials and resources. I believe it is through avenues like iTunes U that schools will learn to help our students see learning in new and exciting ways while at the same time opening our classrooms and homes to a wide array of exciting new educational opportunities.

http://tinyurl.com/blm9l87

Five Best To-Do List Managers

Earlier in the week, we asked you which to-do list app you thought was the best. You weighed in with hundreds of nominations. We tallied them up, ranked them, and looked into the top five to see why they're the best of the pack. Here they are:

http://tinyurl.com/btnkqd7

Google Apps Challenging Microsoft in Business

“Google is getting traction” on Microsoft, said Melissa Webster, an analyst with IDC. “Its ‘good enough’ product has become pretty good. It looks like 2013 is going to be the year for content and collaboration in the cloud.”

http://tinyurl.com/a8cfpys

Bring the noise: has technology made us scared of silence?

Beginning at infancy, the constant media soundscape has provided the background noise either side of bassinet, kindergarten, school and university. It is little wonder many of my students feel agitated and ill-at-ease when there is not at least one portal providing background noise.

http://tinyurl.com/bzqmoty

3 Ideas That Will Not Transform Schools

I wanted to share a couple of ideas that I think get way too much attention and definitely need some tweaking.  Although there is merit for each idea, they do little to transform the culture of a school yet I have seen many jump on their individual bandwagons.

http://tinyurl.com/b4p6ucb

23 Ways To Use The iPad In The 21st Century PBL Classroom

"Is the Cell Phone the New Pencil?" and More

Is the cell Phone the New Pencil?

Creative Commons photo by emdot

It is commonplace to bemoan the poor writing skills of students today. Yes, there is no question that writing effectively is difficult. Yes, it is true that we don't provide enough high quality writing instruction (writing is known as the "forgotten R"). And yes, the demands of a knowledge economy require excellent writing abilities. But the students we teach today write more than any generation in human history http://bit.ly/MTBUND

Where Microsoft Has More Taste than AppleApple’s most recent skeuomorph is one of the worst. The company’s Podcasts app, released in June, actually shows a reel-to-reel tape playing while the podcast is running. Do people under the age of 30 even know what a reel-to-reel tape player is?The Calendar app for the iPad has torn paper, suggesting that previous months have been ripped from a physical calendar. Gimme a break. http://bit.ly/Mheu6v

Top Universities Test the Online Appeal of FreeIn a major development on Tuesday, a dozen highly ranked universities said they had signed on with Coursera, a new venture offering free classes online. They still must overcome some skepticism about the quality of online education and the prospects for having the courses cover the costs of producing them, but their enthusiasm is undimmed. http://nyti.ms/NJ4fKY

Is the Khan Academy a Real 'Education Solution'
Dan Meyer and Ed Week opinion blogger Justin Reich, noting that there are errors in some of the Khan Academy videos, have started a contest inviting readers to critique the academy lessons. http://wapo.st/OcBqCG


Education Takes a Dramatic New Course [in Australia]

FOR the first time, all Australian students will study dance, drama, media arts, music and the visual arts until year 10, under a draft new national curriculum released yesterday. http://bit.ly/NFfRxx

10 Things in School that Should be Obsolete

So much about how and where kids learn has changed over the years, but the physical structure of schools has not. Looking around most school facilities — even those that aren’t old and crumbling – it’s obvious that so much of it is obsolete today, and yet still in wide use. http://bit.ly/LDUNEg